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Drama in the Park
Taylor Park - A Chapter in Our Own History
May Day Event
Victorian Day
The Beginning
A Walk with Samuel Taylor
Research Through Drama
Legacy of Samuel Taylor Portrait Gallery
Taylor Park - The Legacy of Water
Regatta Day
Visit to the Archive Library
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Taylor Park - A Chapter in Our Own History
Location: St Helens
Taylor Park is a valuable amenity in St. Helens' community wealth. It has been and still is an important landmark in many family histories.
Visiting the park is as regular a feature in family life as Sunday lunch with Grandma, bedtime stories and the weekly supermarket shopping trip.
Samuel Taylor, conceiving a way to improve the health and leisure of the community, may not have realised that he was also creating an important chapter in the life history of so many people for generations to come.
Taylor Park has featured in the lives of many St Helens folk, past and present and it is interesting to watch the initial smile of recognition which crosses the faces of everyone to whom you mention it.
Many of their memories begin, understandably, by describing the various attractions which were in place in the park some years ago. They remember the aviary, the boats, the paddling pool and the band concerts. Many mention feeding the ducks and quite a few remember how the rhododendrons hung imposingly over the footpaths and hid from sight the elusive 'Grey Lady!'
One would think that their accounts would be too similar to be of any interest but it is the particular memories which give each account a unique place in the park's history. These memories are personal. Some comical; others mischievous and a few, poignant.
The ex-policeman who first remembered 'messing about on the boats' as a lad and then later chasing youths who were messing about on the boats, in his adult role. (A good example of poacher turned gamekeeper.) The beautiful personal memories of a romance in the park cut short by early death. The closure of the Old Men's Hut.
All these are just a few of the personal memories which have been shared.
Another fact, which bodes well for the park's future is that so many people are bringing their children here because their parents brought them, just as their parent's parents did so. The park has changed since then and sadly some of the attractions are no more. Yet, the community draw is still strong enough to sustain interest and there are other attractions such as the beautiful Oak Wood with its wildlife and of course the waterfowl which return to the park with the same regularity as their human counterpart.
The sight of a family including grandparents, parents and a little girl are commonplace but the romantic eye would note that the little girl is pushing a pram containing a dolly. Is this a vision of the future?
At present their is great excitement concerning lottery funding which will add to the park's attractions. Much will be put in place to serve the needs of the whole community, young, old and most importantly, the teenagers. With something for everyone, hopefully everyone will share the responsibility of care and ownership.
In Taylor Park today there still remains evidence of fine, traditional Victorian garden design. One document, well worth reading, found in the city archives, describes the first 'consultant's appraisal of the site and suggestions for its final construction. One imagines a straw-hatted 'garden makeover' character standing atop the 'Big Hill' gazing across the lake and skillfully adding drawings to sketch pad and notebook. It has been suggested that many of the Victorian aspects will be retained in the future but, in fitting with more modern ecological thinking, more land will and already has been developed for the protection of nature.
A good example of this can be seen in the work already carried out by the Ranger Service in the Oak Wood and the old tennis courts. Where you can now , literally, see the wood for the trees. Sitting on a bench in one of these areas, one is never short of company of the highest quality.
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